10 Quick Fixes For Your Online Credibility

Online credibility is key to a successful website, right? Right. The way people perceive your company or brand and whether or not they trust you affects their behavior on your site. People that don’t trust you will most likely leave your site rather quickly. Those who do trust you might linger a little longer, engage with your content, and possibly convert.
Conversion can be anything from signing up to your newsletter, creating an account for your service, getting in touch with you for more information, or even purchasing your product. No matter how you define conversion – or what you want your visitors to do on your site – it won’t happen unless they feel comfortable and trust you.

Briskcode invites their visitors to get in touch in a very friendly and personal way.

Now, there are a lot of things you can do to increase your own and your site’s credibility. We’ve covered aspects such as your content presentation and personality of your site and how they affect your online credibility.

Yet, you may not have the time nor the resources to come up with and implement a complex strategy. In that case, here are 10 quick fixes that should help you increase your credibility in a blink.

1. Show that you are real

Ensure that your site is designed by humans, for humans. You can achieve this in different ways. For example, by adding some personality to your design, or by presenting yourself and your team as real and trustworthy people.

For instance, by showing a picture of your team you can prove that you really do exist. Match the setup of the picture to your company – you can let your team be more casual if you are a creative agency. However, especially for bigger companies or corporations, an out of the ordinary team picture can be very likable.

2. Keep your site up to date

Especially true for consumer websites – news sites especially; where the information and content changes daily, if not hourly. This works both ways: Users want to see what is currently applicable to them, and the website’s owner needs to ensure the site, and brand, remains credible. Losing online credibility is especially dangerous in the modern age. A website represents the brand online, and if users can’t trust it online why would they trust it offline?

Aside from purely content, ‘smaller’ things such as support or contact information are essential. Leaving out of date information online could again have disastrous consequences – especially in terms of credibility. Nowadays, if someone needs to get in contact with a company, a quick Google search is usually the easy option. If contact information is incomplete or not up to date, then that’s potentially another customer lost.

3. Check your overall design

The look and feel of your design has a big impact on your credibility, Does your site look clean and to the point? Does the design match your business or market? Does it represent your brand? Does it look professional and is the design consistent across all pages?

Those are all questions that you should ask yourself when it comes to the overall design of your website. Why? Because the moment people come to your site, that’s the first thing they see; and the first impression counts, right? So make it a good one ensure an authentic and trustworthy look & feel of your site.

4. It is acceptable to show off your expertise

Are you good at anything in particular? Is your product better than those of your competitors? Do your services stand out because of your exceptional eye for detail? Or are you an expert in your field?

Then make sure you say so. On the Web, it is very important to keep in mind that your users can only see what you show them. There is no body language that gives off the impression if you feel confident, and there are no facial expression to tell how certain you are about what you say. Give away enough information about what you do – and what you are good at – to make people believe you.

5. Let others speak for you

Besides pointing out what you are good at yourself, let others speak for you. Third-party testimonials and case studies can be very powerful because they provide you with credibility, without the need to show off or praise yourself.

Ask people you have worked with to provide you with a reference. Clients happy with your services will more likely be happy to help you out with a testimonial. Also logos of companies you have worked with or social votes, such as Facebook likes and Twitter followers, will help your visitors to see you as a popular, successful, and trustworthy company.

6. Make it easy to contact you

Obviously, the World Wide Web is worldwide. No matter what we are looking for, we can easily end up somewhere on the other side of the globe. While chances, that someone will actually stop by to say “Hi” are quite small, people still want to reach out to you. They want to ask questions and tell you their opinion.

Look at your own site for a moment. Could I get in touch with you right now to tell you “I think your company rocks!”? If not, make sure you change that! Promote your contact information somewhere very easy to find. Next, make sure you are available and ready to respond.

7. Offer different contact options

So you offer contact details on your site. That’s great. Do you show a name and a link to your Twitter account? Can people fill in a contact form? Or send you a plain old email? Maybe you even offer a phone number so people can call you?

Why not offer all of them? We are all different and that’s why we all prefer different means of communication. While some of us love to talk on the phone, others prefer chat, or even email as it gives them more time to think through their questions. Ideally, you consider all of these preferences and offer multiple ways to contact you.

8. Be active on social media

A presence on social media has almost become a must have for any company. As social media is all about interacting with others and sharing stuff, it’s not a surprise that people use these channels to contact you.

Now, the problem is merely “being on social media” is not enough. You have to be active as well. Imagine people contact you via Facebook and you only check your account every two weeks. By the time you see the message and reply, chances are that the request is long outdated. So ensure that if you decide to offer social media as communication channel on your site, make sure you also use them effectively.

9. Show off what your place looks like

Also a great way to offer your users some sense of trust is by giving them an impression of what your place looks like. Not only do places and workstations tell us a lot about the people that work there, it also builds trust.

Again, a physical location adds to the impression that a company really exists – as we have learned: an important aspect in the online world.

10. Show who is behind your support

Last but not least, if you offer any kind of support on your site, make sure you tell your visitors who they are talking to. Whether it’s via the phone, live chat, or email, it’s much more inviting to get in touch with someone we know – rather than contacting a veiled, Oz-esque, stranger.

Dependent on the size of your company, you can offer personal contact details, or stick with a general support line and show all of the people that are likely to reply. Consider names and pictures of your support team as a first step.

Your thoughts?

How many of these quick fixes would improve your online credibility? Or do you have other tips on how to increase credibility on the web? Then let us know in the comments below.